The Most Beautiful College in Every State

A classic southern belle, Alabama’s campus features plenty of green space, manicured landscaping, and an amazing variety of architecture. Highlights include the Greek Revival-style President’s Mansion and the Beaux-Arts museum of natural history. Sure, this large state university has a powerhouse athletic program (and a state-of-the-art stadium to boot) but there’s nothing lacking about its Southern charm.

With such a small population, Alaska has a limited number of colleges, and the majority of the buildings seem built for function. But the Fairbanks campus of University of Alaska has a new museum building, designed by architect Joan Soranno in 2005, with a gleaming, white aluminum exterior and swooping angles meant to evoke glaciers and alpine ridges.

This Tucson school scores the top spot in Arizona by virtue of a palm tree-lined mall, incredible views of the Santa Catalina Mountains, and plenty of red brick (and red-roofed) halls.

Several buildings belonging to this suburban Arkansas college are on the National Register of Historic Places. There’s also a charming gazebo, and an abundance of varying tree types for enthusiastic arboriss.

You’d be forgiven for mistaking Pepperdine’s Malibu campus for a luxury seaside resort. The school moved to its current location in 1972, and it’s not hard to see why: the tiered landscape along the Pacific Coast Highway offers expansive views on the ocean.

Nestled in a bustling college town in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, this university’s location made it a no-brainer for the list. Views of the Flatiron rock formations and unique, Tuscan-inspired architecture don’t hurt either.

Connecticut has a number of contenders, but the towering and intricate Collegiate Gothic architecture of Yale University, in New Haven, can’t be ignored. And that’s to say nothing of the school’s Georgian-style hall or glass-and-pink-marble library.

If you want to visit the prettiest college in the state of of Delaware, you can find it less than an hour from Philadelphia, an hour from Baltimore, a little more than an hour from the Delaware beaches, and just over two hours from New York City. But that’s not what’s important here. UD’s campus is green and manicured, with red brick buildings that evoke though not on the same level the stunning University of Virginia (more on that later).

Founded just 48 years ago, Flagler eagerly inserted itself into the compendium of America’s most breathtaking college campus. Its architecture is about as unique as it gets among colleges, largely because it operates out of the former Ponce de León Hotel (a Spanish Renaissance masterpiece built in 1888 by Standard Oil co-founder, Henry Flagler). And neither students nor visitors can complain about its location in equally-attractive St. Augustine.

If you’re looking for a college that could double as the setting of Downton Abbey, Berry College runs away with the award—and the campus actually has been used as a filming site for movies including Remember the Titans and Sweet Home Alabama. Though the student body is quite small, Berry boasts 27,000 acres of hills, streams, meadows, and beautiful architecture, making it the largest contiguous campus on Earth.

Granted, it shouldn’t be too difficult to create a beautiful campus in Hawaii, but the state university’s campus at Mānoa still stands out. Its campus offers volcano views, sits near Waikiki Beach, and plays host to frequent rainbows.

The University of Idaho features an arboretum, a grove of trees planted by various figures including Teddy Roosevelt, a golf course, and more trees. Lovely views and gorgeous architecture make UI our pick for Idaho.

Illinois had several contenders (especially Northwestern), but we gave the top spot to the University of Chicago. Its largely Gothic campus played host to the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition—a celebration of the 400th anniversary of Columbus landing in the Americas—and today features many modern design elements alongside its classic halls.

The state university beat out the likes of Notre Dame with its impressive landscaping and bright limestone halls. The Sample Gates entryway in the Old Crescent, also hewn from Indiana limestone, are particularly stunning.

The iconic Campanile bell tower and Memorial Union are about as impressive as college structures come. But Iowa State even features a campus lake—complete with swans—and a spectacular central lawn.

Kansas has an impressive number of attractive schools: Friends, Kansas University, and Kansas Wesleyan, just to name a few. But the oldest public university in the Sunflower State is also our pick for the prettiest. Plenty of green space (more than 2,000 collective acres) and limestone buildings make K-State a true beauty.

The main campus, known as Belknap, is set in historic Old Louisville and includes stunning Grawemeyer Hall. There’s even a cast of the famous statue, The Thinker, and plenty of foliage flanking the classic red brick structures.

A combination of tropical palms and evergreen oaks gives Tulane an unmistakable New Orleans vibe, and the manicured grounds and variety of stately buildings make it a spot worth visiting even for the non-matriculated. Majestic Gibson hall faces Audubon Park just across St. Charles Avenue, and behind it lies acres of lovely campus.

America’s easternmost state has no shortage of beautiful campuses—Bowdoin, for example, was a top contender. But the stunning scenery and unique atmosphere of the College of the Atlantic made its campus the winner. Nestled on an island in Bar Harbor, any part of the tiny college could be mistaken for a private coastal estate. Though the Turrets building, in particular, looks like a storybook mansion.

A domed chapel, a Versailles-like palace that is the world’s largest single dormitory, and an idyllic setting on the Severn River and Chesapeake Bay. This military academy is where our country’s navy grows up, and it couldn’t be much prettier.

Massachusetts is the seventh-smallest state in the country, but it might have the largest selection of stunning college campuses. After all, the Bay State is home to Harvard, Smith, Boston College, Williams, Mount Holyoke, and Amherst. On and on it goes. But the winner right now is Holy Cross, perched on a hill above the city of Worcester. The school has received numerous accolades for some of the best landscaping in the country, and both the Fenwick and O’Kane Halls are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Leafy, suburban Kalamazoo College is probably best described as pleasant. Understated but attractive red-brick buildings make up the majority of campus structures: Hodge House, the president’s residence, is a good example.

Winters at St. Olaf, about 40 miles south of Minneapolis, can be brutal. But goodness do they make for a picturesque scene. The fall foliage here is fierce, too, and beautiful structures like Old Main and Holland Hall help complete the picture.

Towering oaks, the grand Lyceum, blooming flowers, the lovely town of Oxford: Ole Miss has no shortage of beauty or Southern charm. Other highlights at this state school include the tailgating spot, The Grove, and beautiful Ventress Hall.

How many schools can say they’ve hosted a World’s Fair? How about the Olympic Games? It just so happens that Washington University has managed to do both. In 1904, what’s now known as Danforth Campus was the site of both international events. The grandeur continues to be embodied by the Collegiate Gothic architecture and sprawling green lawns.

The red-brick clock tower of Montana’s University Hall stands silhouetted against Mount Sentinel, on which a giant concrete “M” serves as the university’s version of the Hollywood Sign. The Oval at the center of campus and a majestic valley setting make this a particularly stunning state college.

Nebraska’s Jesuit university takes the honor here primarily because of the architecture. St. John’s Parish and the new Harper Center represent old and new beauty on Creighton’s Omaha campus.

It’s easy to confuse this college with a luxury cabin retreat in the hills above Lake Tahoe. The Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences features impressive woodwork and masonry, and seamlessly fits the Tahoe-area vibe. We’re also willing to argue that it’s one of the most unique colleges on this list.

Perhaps President Eisenhower said it best when he described Dartmouth in 1953: “This is what a college should look like.” The school and adjoining town of Hanover sit on a hill above the Connecticut River, just across the border from Vermont. Classic architecture and a magnificent quad are highlights of the pristine campus.

Another Ivy to perform as well aesthetically as it does academically, Princeton’s Collegiate Gothic campus is an exercise in Ivy League splendor. On a visit here, don’t miss Nassau Hall, the beautiful archways, or the adjacent golf course. There’s also plenty of literal ivy at Princeton.

Actually a satellite campus of Maryland’s runner-up (St. John’s College in Annapolis), St. John’s College Santa Fe sits in the trees at the base of Monte Luna, offering students a mountain experience with lots of greenery.

It proved particularly hard to choose a school to represent New York—from Columbia to Bard and from Union to Cornell, the Empire State teems with pretty colleges. But there’s just something about Colgate University that makes it stand out. Perhaps it’s the fact that it’s in the middle of nowhere, but the whole place just seems unspoiled. Entire forests, rolling hills, and a campus lake are a perfect complement to the traditional collegiate architecture.

Wake Forest is our pick for North Carolina (another state with no shortage of pretty). The groundskeeping here is top quality, as evidenced by the patchwork of fields and plazas on campus. The buildings, for the most part, are gorgeous inside and out.

North Dakota doesn’t have a huge number of colleges, but the ones it does have are quite scenic. Both state schools (the University of North Dakota and North Dakota State University), are pretty. But we give the edge to UND for the attractive English Coulee that zigs and zags through campus.

Small, liberal arts Kenyon College boasts both a beautiful campus as well as some beautiful alumni (see: Newman, Paul). The majestic stonework dorms and quaint academic buildings are an ideal fit for the gorgeous rural setting.

An expanse of green grass and the soothing fountain outside the Edmon Low Library set the tone for Oklahoma State. It’s a mixture of incredible landscaping and stately halls that create an ideal campus atmosphere. Check out the Formal Gardens, the grand staircases in front of the Student Union, or peaceful Theta Pond.

Tucked away in a quiet Portland neighborhood is Lewis & Clark, which was named for the famous explorers. This campus must exemplify the beauty they encountered on their expedition. We especially love the rustic undergraduate campus, which is set among Douglas Firs and rolling hills.

Pennsylvania is one of those states with too many contenders to note. (The Commonwealth states, including Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, are particularly bountiful.) But Penn has it all: eclectic and varied architecture, plenty of trees, and even a park with views of the Philadelphia skyline.

The most appropriate word here is stunning, and it’s no wonder: it’s what happens when you form a college out of seven magnificent Gilded Age estates. And that’s to say nothing of Salve Regina’s perch on the windswept coast of charming Newport.

Elegant fountains, an Asian garden, a Florentine bell tower, and Georgian architecture: it’s difficult to imagine a more comprehensive approach to collegiate beauty. And Furman University’s lakeside location in the Blue Mountain foothills is a tremendous bonus for degree-seekers and visitors alike.

Augustana’s campus, like others in South Dakota, is pleasant but not jaw-dropping. But its close-cropped quads, impressive administration building, and scenic Sioux Falls setting easily make it the state’s prettiest.

Rural and stunning Sewanee was a close runner-up, but Vanderbilt is just too gorgeous to pass by. Impeccable grounds and landscaping, most obvious in places like Alumni Lawn and Bishops Commons, set the campus apart. Majestic columns (on display at the Wyatt Center) and clean red-brick facades add to the school’s impressive beauty.

The majestic, tree-lined entrance gives visitors to the Dallas school an immediate Instagram-worthy shot, and it doesn’t get less impressive once you’re inside. Manicured lawns, red-brick buildings, and a feeling of symmetry land SMU on our list.

Utah State’s main campus, in Logan, stands out even when compared to beautiful schools like Brigham Young. Majestic Old Main makes a stunning silhouette against a gorgeous mountain backdrop. It’s not just mountains that make the place beautiful, though; a well-groomed campus and valley views add to the school’s visual appeal.

Middlebury is one of those places that’s pretty year round, because the vibrant fall foliage gives way to pristine white snowfall—with minimal dreary time in between—and come summer, the campus is blanketed in colorful blooms. The campus is surrounded by the Green Mountains and the Adirondacks, and there’s a picturesque New England town nearby.

No list of the sort would be complete without this classic, designed by the singular Thomas Jefferson. The impeccable Lawn, the iconic Rotunda, the now eponymous Jeffersonian Architecture, and the Grounds (specifically not the “campus,” in this case) at UVA are tops in the state.

If you’re not from the western United States, the University of Washington might pass you by. Don’t let it. The campus not only sits on Union Bay, with snowcapped mountains in the distance, but it also boasts some spectacular architecture. And in the spring, the cherry blossom explosion makes the place particularly pretty.

Grey spires and old brick halls towering on a hill above the Potomac River. Crisply manicured lawns and a prime Washington, D.C. location. Georgetown has been this district’s beauty since 1789.

Big points for architecture here, particularly Woodburn Circle, which features three beautiful halls on the National Register of Historic Places. Add in plenty of leafy trees and a riverside setting, and you’ve got West Virginia’s winner.

Apologies to other Wisconsin schools, but it’s tough to beat out a campus set on an isthmus between two lakes, like UW’s flagship at Madison. Aside from the incredible natural scenery, buildings like Bascom Hall, Music Hall, and Memorial Union give the campus impressive character.

The real strength of this university is the rustic setting (well, just about all of Wyoming is rustic) and the beautiful sandstone Old Main building. From Prexy’s Pasture to the evergreens punctuating the grounds, this campus easily makes this wild, unbound state proud.